Dignity Party Announce Upper House ticket

Kelly Vincent has today launched her bid for re-election supported by a team of dynamic and diverse Upper House candidates for the Dignity Party Legislative Council ticket.

“I’m really proud to be launching Dignity Party’s Upper House ticket for the 2018 South Australian election today,” says Kelly Vincent.

“It’s been an enormous honour and privilege to represent South Australians in our State Parliament since 2010, and to witness an improvement in the understanding and awareness of the needs of many disenfranchised members of the community, especially people with disabilities.

“But there is still much work to do. There are many barriers to access democracy, respect, and the necessities of everyday life for too many people.

“We need to improve our access to democracy, and our parliaments and governments need to make decisions based on the diversity of needs in our community, rather than self-interest.

“I’m pleased about the changes we’ve seen in Australia with the roll-out of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) but there is a lot of work yet to be done to ensure the NDIS we envisioned is implemented effectively. And while the Dignity Party has led the way in improving areas like the justice system, the education system, and eliminating access barriers to public spaces, we still need more comprehensive, holistic policy that understands and responds to the needs of everyone who makes this State great.

“I’m also honoured to have an outstanding team of quality team of candidates supporting my campaign.

“Number 2 on the Dignity Party ticket is Speech Pathologist, Diana Bleby. Diana has a breadth of experience in service and leadership within private and public school systems as well as operating her own small business focusing on adults and children with communication needs.

“Diana also brings a wealth of knowledge about the NDIS, education and literacy as a specialist provider of services for young people and families. Diana has worked across regional SA, and sees the unequal treatment of city and country people and is working to change this. She focusses on human rights and justice issues, and has professional involvement in these areas.

“Number 3 on our ticket is Ryan Mann. Ryan wants to see improvements to the health system, especially when it comes to rehabilitation services. With his unusual experience of being a patient in the spinal ward of both the WA and SA health care systems, Ryan believes SA is wasting money in the long term and reducing people’s future prospects by not being more thorough with the rehabilitation we offer due to lack of funding.

“As a parent, Ryan wants to see South Australia grasp the opportunities of future technologies, and applauds the increased emphasis on STEM in schools.

“Number 4 on our ticket is Esther Simbi. Esther was born in South Sudan and contracted polio as a child. Esther came to Australia in 2005 as a refugee after living in extreme hardships in refugee camps in Uganda for 19 years. With a strong belief that access to quality education gave her opportunities to establish a career as a social worker and Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner, through an emphasis on education Esther now empowers others to understand that disability is not inability.

“Esther is the mother of two daughters and was the Founder of, and Coordinator for, the Crossing the Bridge Project a program providing Services to African Women with Disabilities, to mothers of African children with disabilities and to wives and female family members of African men with disabilities,” said Ms Vincent.